“The world is bigger than five,” Erdogan said, emphasizing his signature statement, and added that Turkiye also expressed its objections “to the global governance and justice system before the United Nations Security Council.”

“While we were expressing our stance against oppression, occupation, and tyranny by saying ‘one minute’ (in the 2009 World Economic Forum) in Davos, our concern was peace, tranquility, and respect for human life,” he continued.

Turkey has not swerved from the same path despite all the pain, injustice, and price it has paid in its nearly 40-year history of fighting terrorism, Erdogan said.

“We have carried out our cross-border political, diplomatic, and security struggle in this entire region from the Balkans to the Caucasus, from Syria to Libya, with this understanding,” he added.

Since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on Feb. 24, the EU, US, and UK have imposed tough financial sanctions on Moscow.

In Ukraine, at least 1,151 civilians have been killed and 1,842 injured, according to UN estimates; however, the actual number is likely to be much higher.

More than 3.87 million Ukrainians have also fled to several European countries, and millions more have been displaced within the country, according to the UN Refugee Agency.

On Tuesday, Russia and Ukraine will meet in Istanbul.

The two-day peace talks, to take place at the presidential Dolmabahce office, are set to start at 10.30 a.m. local time (0730GMT).

So far, several rounds of talks between Russia and Ukraine have been held in Belarus, and the last one took place via video conference on March 14, without any concrete outcomes yet.

The meeting between Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers, the highest-level meeting between the two sides since the war began, took place in Antalya on March 10.

Despite their inability to reach an agreement on a ceasefire, the sides agreed to continue negotiations.